Monday thankfully went by really quickly and I felt like I aced the final, although I'm sure the grader would have a bit of a hard time reading my handwriting. (Sorry!) The rest of the day was spent relaxing and packing up some of my items that I didn't need anymore into my suitcase. I didn't pack too much stuff cause I wanted to put off packing as long as possible.
Tuesday (the 19th) was spent checking off more things off of my bucket list. TP and I headed to Greenwich because we wanted to see the Greenwich Prime Meridian or the Prime Meridian of the World! (It divides the Western and Eastern Hemisphere and resembles the 0ยบ Longitude on the globe!) Yes it's found in London (or the general area). It was actually about a 45 minute tube ride southeast of the city. So we left bright and early around 10 o'clock to go seek adventure.
By the time we actually made it to the observatory park, it was quite stormy and we got rained on for a good 20 minutes. Thankfully, once we had made it up the hill, the clouds had disappeared leaving us soaking wet and a sky full of sunshine. On our way up the hill, we met a nice American guy who had just gotten done studying in Germany and who was spending his layover exploring the city. His next stop was South Africa, so he had a long flight ahead of him.
We made it up the hill, but quickly realized that in order to go into the observatory, we had to pay, and quickly dismissed the idea. Thankfully, there was a line drawn outside on the ground that you could stand on and take pictures.
The view was quite lovely on the top of the hill! so we had to get a picture!
After visiting the Prime Meridian, we made our way back down the hill to figure out where to eat lunch. TP and I immediately wanted Byron, and convinced our American tagalong that he had to try it while he was in London. (At this point I mostly ignored him because I was starting to get annoyed by his presence-_- I think it was because I hadn't had to be around another American in a while besides my roomies)
This gate was the entrance to the park. I thought it was very quaint and loved the view with the trees, blue sky and clouds.
We took the DLR (Docklands Light Railway, the only tube that functions without a driver!) back to Canary Wharf to have lunch at the Byron in the shopping center, and then thankfully parted ways with him (about time!) We then headed to Piccadilly Circus to start looking for some take home souvenirs. There is actually a large shop in the circus that has a whole bunch of different typical touristy souvenirs, but we didn't find what we were looking for, so we made our way back home.
The next day (May 20th), I made my way to the London Zoo!!! (Finally!) This was something I had wanted to do for quite some time. I took the long way around and got off the Tube at Great Portland Street and make the mile long walk to the zoo, enjoying the weather and Regent's Park. The Zoo is actually located in Regent's Park at the north side and is quite small for a zoo, but had quite a few different animals!
I had to stop by the aquarium and see all of the different fish and water animals.
Just a hippo relaxing in a mud bath!
Giraffes are freaking awesome. Unfortunately, none of them came very close to the wall. Because I had come so late in the day, many of the animals were sleeping.
There were quite a few areas that you could walk into and sort of interact with the animals with no touching. The lemurs were one of them. This dude was pretty relaxed.
In another building with all sorts of animals, they had an anteater walking around and interacting with people. He was pretty fearless, in fact people who had buggies (or strollers) were advised to remove anything from the lower section because he kept climbing into it looking for food.
My favorite animals, the otters, were unfortunately all tuckered out, but I was still glad I got to see them!
They had an entire penguin enclosure and I managed to snap a picture with this little guy.
Like I said, most of the animals were passed out when I went:( but that's ok!
Of course I had to stop by the famous Reptile House from Harry Potter
Unfortunately, I didn't see him or the Dursely's visiting.
I had to cut my visit a touch short though cause I had plans for the evening. I went home and changed into something a bit warmer and grabbed my book and ticket and headed back to Piccadilly Circus and the Waterstones that is just down the street from the tube station.
My favorite author, Sarah J. Maas, was touring the UK with her new series A Court of Thorns and Roses. I had bought her book earlier in the month and I decided that I wanted to also buy Throne of Glass for her to sign as well. I'm glad I arrived early, because there was a bit of a queue when I showed up. Seating began at 6:30 and Sarah arrived at 7!
She talked about the new series and where she got the idea for it. She's a really funny speaker and I truly enjoy her books. She talked and answered questions for about an hour, and then we all lined up for her to sign books. It was a very long process because she took the time to talk with everyone along with taking pictures. It was already after 8:45 when I got to talk with her. We talked a little about the UK and she asked me if I enjoyed studying here. I told her that I would move here in a heartbeat if I ever got the chance and she agreed. Then I asked for a picture:)
I thanked her and headed back home.
